Hereinafter, a description is provided of a conventional multilayer ceramic capacitor and a method of manufacturing the capacitor.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a conventional multilayer ceramic capacitor.
First, a ceramic sheet for forming ceramic layer 101 is produced by mixing a dielectric material (e.g. barium titanate), polyvinyl butyral, a resin (e.g. acrylic), and a solvent, slurrying the mixture, and then using a doctor blade method.
Next, nickel (hereinafter referred to as Ni) powder and an organic material, such as a binder, are mixed to prepare electrode paste. Internal electrode 102 of a desired shape is formed using the electrode paste. The respective internal electrodes and ceramic sheets are stacked alternately one on another to form a laminate. After this laminate is fired, external electrodes 103 are formed on both end faces where internal electrodes 102 are exposed.
In this method, the Ni and the ceramic sheet are joined by the resin contained in the ceramic sheet or the electrode paste. After the resin has decomposed and vaporized during the firing process, adhesion between the Ni and the ceramic sheet is lost. This has a problem: a difference in sintering shrinkage factors between the Ni and the ceramic causes structural defects, such as delamination 104.